Capt’n Eli is a colorful character in Jay Piscopo’s new “Creatures of the Sea” coloring book

Press release at this link.
PORTLAND, ME – (April 29, 2010) – Jay Piscopo announces the release of his new “Creatures of the Sea” coloring book. This book will debut at the Maine Comics Arts Festival on Sunday, May 23.

Piscopo is the author and illustrator of “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli” graphic novel series.

“This coloring book gives me a chance to highlight Capt’n Eli and some of the major characters in the series as well as the opportunity to show artwork of exotic and dangerous creatures from the sea,” said Piscopo.

From a walrus to a giant octopus to eels and lionfish, each page highlights a single character in a scene with a real or fantastical sea creature.

“A hero in conflict with a giant octopus has been a staple of many pulp adventure and comic book covers and I was inspired by that tradition,” continued Piscopo. “Creatures of the Sea” features three giant octopus scenes, two with the main character, Capt’n Eli. “You’ll also see Sea Ghost racing with sea turtles and Golden Age Commander X and Circe the Sorceress struggle with a giant crab monster.”

(Follow this link to view vintage pulp and comic book covers with a giant octopus theme.)

Created in his signature retro style, this 12-page book is suitable for kids of all ages. Priced at $2, this book is family affordable and, like “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli,” is something that can be enjoyed together as a family activity.

Coloring is one of the oldest and simplest activities and Piscopo has received a lot of response from adults looking forward to this book because they grew up with coloring books and still color as a hobby.

“When I was a kid coloring books seemed to be everywhere,” noted Piscopo. “Today they exist but not in the same abundance. This book is my homage to the heyday of the coloring book fad of the 1960s and 70s. I was greatly influenced by Alex Toth’s coloring book work from the 1960s and inspired by that standard.”

Follow this link for more about Alex Toth. Samples of Toth’s coloring book work can be viewed here and here.

Following the festival, “Creatures of the Sea” will be available for purchase exclusively online at www.captneli.com.

On Saturday, May 22 at 10:00am Piscopo will kick off the Maine Comics Arts Festival with a free Kids Cartooning Workshop at the Portland Public Library. In this hour-long workshop, children ages 7-12 are invited to try their hand at cartoon art. Using simple geometric shapes, Piscopo will demonstrate how to build figures and perspective to create art that tells a story.

For a behind the scenes look at this interactive workshop, visit this link.

More about the Maine Comics Arts Festival: The Maine Comics Arts Festival will be held Sunday, May 23 from 10:00am – 5:00pm at Ocean Gateway on the Portland waterfront. Admission is $5 and kids 12 and under are free. Workshops and panels will take place on Saturday, May 22 at the Portland Public Library. More information can be found at this link.

More about Jay Piscopo: Piscopo has been making state-of-the-art children's entertainment for nearly 20 years. He served as an art director at Tom Snyder Productions, where he led the creative team in the production of educational CD-ROMs, including the award-winning “Fizz and Martina Math Adventures” and was as an animator on the ABC Saturday morning show “Squigglevision.” He was also the co-creator of the internationally distributed comic book series featuring the world’s first disabled superheroes, “The Scrap City Pack Rats,” which he created in partnership with Goodwill Industries. Jay is an engaging presenter who has conducted hundreds of comics workshops and classroom events teaching drawing and storytelling techniques. He resides in his hometown of Portland, Maine.

More about “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli”: With his companions Jolly Roger, a 200-year-old parrot, and the faithful seadog Barney, Capt’n Eli takes readers into a mesmerizing world of time travel, high-tech ships, flying mini-subs, robots, lost civilizations, and undersea empires in conflict. Volumes 1 and 2 are available now and Volume 3 is scheduled for release in 2010. This series is published by Nemo Publishing and distributed nationally by Diamond Comics Distributors.

Capt'n Eli's origins are quite unique. He’s the namesake of real-life World War II veteran Eli Forsley who was also the inspiration for a line of hand-crafted sodas from Portland, Maine. Read more at this link.

www.captneli.com

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MECAF: John Shableski graphic novel workshop for educators and librarians

“The graphic novel is to publishing today very much as rock and roll was when it first entered the music industry mainstream: a strange format already familiar to the popular culture but not yet understood by the established distribution channels." ~ John Shableski, Diamond Book Distributors








WHAT: The World of Graphic Novels

PRESENTER: John Shableski, Diamond Book Distributors

This free presentation is for librarians and educators who are interested in the world of graphic novels and are looking for definitions, explanations, and advice on where to begin or expand your collection or how to effectively use graphic novels in the classroom. John conducts this workshop nationally with librarians and educators and is known for his interactive, conversational style. This is his first time presenting in Maine. You won’t want to miss this unique opportunity!

WHEN: Saturday, May 22, 2010 – 11:00am

WHERE: Maine Comics Arts Festival

Portland Public Library
5 Monument Square
Portland, Maine


www.mainecomicsfestival.com

THE PRESENTER: John Shableski is sales manager at Diamond Book Distributors, the world's largest distributor of English-language comic books, and one of the biggest distributors of graphic novels in the U.S. through its Diamond Book Distributors division. John has been a panelist at BookExpo America, a moderator for graphic novel panels at the New York Comic Con, a guest speaker at library events, regional book shows and a symposium coordinator. He's currently collaborating on several graphic novel symposiums across the country. His focus is on the independent bookstore market, public and school libraries.

FMI: Casablanca Comics – TEL: 207-780-1676 – EMAIL: comics@casablancacomics.com

Jay Piscopo keynote at Harrison Middle School

Follow this link to check out photos from Jay Piscopo's keynote address at Harrison Middle School's annual Career Fair in his hometown of Yarmouth, Maine.

Jay is the author and illustrator of The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli all ages graphic novel series.

It's a draw at Maine Festival of the Book

View photos at this link.

On Saturday, April 10, 2010 comic book artist Jay Piscopo presented his interactive cartooning workshop to a standing room only crowd at the 4^th annual Maine Festival of the Book. Using simple geometric shapes, Jay demonstrated how anyone can learn to draw and create comics.

Portland, Maine-based Piscopo is the author and illustrator of The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli all-ages graphic novel series. He also co-created The Scrap City Pack Rats, art directed the award-winning Fizz and Martina Math Adventures, and was an animator for ABC TV’s Squigglevision.

Earlier in the week, Piscopo also presented the festival’s youth outreach component with a program for students in the Jobs for Maine’s Graduates' annual Urban Adventure program.

A real page turner

A real page turner
The fourth Maine Festival of the Book opens Friday with three days devoted to all things literary.

By Meredith Goad
Staff Writer

Readings and discussions will be running all day Saturday at the Abromson Center, with topics ranging from writing novels to historic preservation. Comic book artist Jay Piscopo will be hosting a cartoon workshop for ages 7 to 12 at 11 a.m., and from noon to 2 p.m., about 30 authors will hold court at a Book Signing Bonanza, where fans can meet favorite authors.

Read full article at this link.

All attendees of Jay's workshop will receive a free copy of Volume 1 of The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli.

Jay Piscopo: Free program at Maine Festival of the Book

Free young adult, children's programs part of Maine Festival of the Book

Download a Maine Festival of the Book brochure HERE.

Programs designed for all ages and interests will be presented at the Maine Festival of the Book on Saturday, April 10 at the Abromson Center at the University of Southern Maine, Portland. The programs are free and open to the public.

Presented by Maine Reads, the festival offers more than 30 readings, signings, performances, and panel discussions. With the exception of Opening Night on the evening of April 9, a benefit for Maine Reads featuring bestselling authors Tess Gerritsen and Anita Shreve, programs are free. (Tickets for Opening Night are available through www.mainereads.org.)

On Saturday, April 10, young adult and children’s authors will be on hand to sign books and chat with their fans at a special book signing presented by Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance, from noon to 2 pm at the Abromson Center at USM.

Just prior to the book signing session, at 11 am on Saturday, comic book artist Jay Piscopo will present a cartooning workshop for children ages 7-12 at the Abromson Center as part of the Maine Festival of the Book. The workshop is free and open to the public on a first-come, first-serve, basis.

Using simple geometric shapes, Jay will demonstrate how anyone can learn to draw and create comics. While sharing cartooning tips, he will teach perspective and figure drawing to create art that tells a story. Art supplies will be provided.

Portland artist Jay Piscopo is the author and illustrator of The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli, an all-ages graphic novel series. He also co-created The Scrap City Pack Rats, art directed the award-winning Fizz and Martina Math Adventures, and was an animator for ABC TV’s Squigglevision.

Piscopo will also donate his time as part of the festival’s outreach efforts and will present a program for students in the Jobs for Maine’s Graduates program that week.

The festival will also include free readings and discussions for the adult audience starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 10 at the Abromson Center at USM. Programs will run concurrently for approximately an hour each, giving attendees the opportunity to spend a day immersed in new literature and meeting some of their favorite authors while moving from programs ranging from biography, to writing novels, to gardening and historic preservation.

The Maine Festival of the Book is produced by Maine Reads in collaboration with organizations statewide.

Dedicated to the fight for a more literate Maine, Maine Reads provides meaningful programs that celebrate Maine’s rich literacy heritage and encourage literacy and collaboration.

In addition to the Maine Festival of the Book, Maine Reads presents Read With ME., which distributes books to kindergartners statewide, and the Maine Reads Community Literacy Project, which supports libraries statewide.